Twice is nice for 'Tank'

CHRIS FETTERS <BR>Editor Dawgman.com

04/01/2003

At 6-4 and 285 pounds, Terry 'Tank' Johnson already strikes a pretty imposing figure walking around campus at the University of
Washington. And to those first-year players on the football team, he commands a lot of respect as a starting defensive lineman.
But no matter what he does and no matter how hard he works, there's always one guy looking over Tank's shoulder - Steve
Emtman.

"Just having his presence around campus is something," Terry told Dawgman.com about the re-emergence of the former Lombardi
and Outland Trophy winner. "You just see him and you want to do better. He set the bar so high, and there's no getting around it.
You've got to reach that bar or there will be consequences. You have to do the best you can."

And Terry has done what Steve did when he was veteran when it comes to leading the team during winter conditioning. "Being a vet,
it's an honor because I've seen guys ahead of me do the same thing and to be able to go and do the same thing that those guys did
for me. It's cool to help out the young guys, make the younger guys better. It's a good feeling."

Johnson has been stepping up his off-season game as well. "I've been working on my work ethic," he said. "Just how hard I go
every play, how hard I go during conditioning, getting my body in shape so I can go a full game."

Terry came to campus as a freshman weighing 245 pounds. Is he feeling the effects of adding 40 pounds to his frame over the
last two years? "I'm really comfortable at this weight right now," he said. "I'm pretty fast and agile. For a while I was a little tight
but I did some stretching and stayed off of heavy lifting for a week and it feels good now. This is where I'm going to play."

And his position on the line will give Tank plenty of opportunities to bust things up and wreak some havoc. "I'll be inside, right on
the 3 (gap)," he said. "The closest distance to the quarterback is a straight line, so I'll be right there. The closer I can be to him, the
faster I'll get to him.

"I want to get to the quarterback at least 30 times this spring. There are 15 practices, so that means I have to get to him at least
twice every day. I got there 20 times last spring, so 30 will be a little better for me."